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Justin Timberlake at Co-op Live, Manchester – support act, setlist, tickets and more

What tour? The world tour!

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 6th August 2024

Justin Timberlake is heading to Manchester this week on his massive The Forget Tomorrow World Tour.

The so-called prince of pop is set to play at the Co-op Live arena on Thursday 8 August as part of the European leg of the tour. (What tour? The world tour!)

He’s behind some of the biggest chart-topping pop songs of a generation, including SexyBack, Mirrors, and Trolls hit Can’t Stop The Feeling.

Justin Timberlake’s career spans decades, first as a member of boyband NSYNC, then as a hugely successful solo performer.

Timberlake has told more than 63 million singles globally as a solo artist and has 10 Grammy Awards on his shelf.

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If you’re heading to his gig at Co-op Live on 8 August, here’s everything you need to know.

Who’s supporting Justin Timberlake on his UK tour?

A support act for the UK leg of Justin Timberlake’s tour hasn’t actually been announced.

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It’s quite likely he’ll just have a DJ warming up the crowds before he takes to the stage, but we’ll be sure to update this if we hear any differently.

Tickets for Justin Timberlake at Co-op Live

Justin Timberlake has announced the European leg of his tour, including a Manchester show.
Justin Timberlake has announced the European leg of his tour, including a Manchester show.

The Co-op Live is close to being totally sold out for Justin Timberlake, but there are still a few tickets at a range of prices available for his Manchester show.

The best availability at the time of writing is for seated tickets at £109.95 for the upper tier, or £126.50 in the lower tier.

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Some of those still on sale are really close to the action, too.

Tickets then hop up to £148.95 to be in the floor seating section, or – if you want to get really, really close to Mr Trousersnake himself, there are £222.50 ‘Stage Bar’ tickets which are right up close to the B Stage.

There’s even a bar and VIP tables in this area.

See the latest availability at Ticketmaster here.

Justin Timberlake setlist in Manchester

Justin Timberlake has got an epic setlist that includes 28 absolute pop bangers.

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Artists do occasionally shake up their setlists show-to-show, but this has been pretty solid for the Forget Tomorrow World Tour so far.

This is the setlist from Justin’s recent show in Belgium.

No Angels
LoveStoned
Like I Love You
My Love
Technicolor
Sanctified
Infinity Sex
FutureSex/LoveSound
Imagination
Drown
Cry Me a River
Let the Groove Get In
My Favorite Drug
Señorita
Summer Love
F**kin’ Up the Disco
Play
Suit & Tie
Flame
Say Something
Pusher Love Girl
Until the End of Time
Selfish
What Goes Around… Comes Around
CAN’T STOP THE FEELING!
Rock Your Body
SexyBack
Encore:
Mirrors

Stage times for Justin Timberlake at Co-op Live

The exact stage times may not get announced until the day of the show (we’ll keep this updated nearer the time), but we do know the following:

  • Doors – 6.30pm
  • Event starts – 7pm
  • Justin Timberlake rough stage time- 8.45pm
  • Curfew – 11pm

Official throwback after party

Not ready to call it a night after Justin exits the stage? Co-op Live has you covered.

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The venue is throwing a free afterparty, right after the event until 1am, featuring non-stop Noughties hits from the likes of NSync, Britney, Backstreet Boys, Usher, and Nelly.

The official throwback party is free to enter, on a first-come-first-served basis, and is 18+ only. You’ll need to show your gig ticket to get in.

How to get to Co-op Live via tram, driving, or walking

Tram

Now, as for how you’ll get to shows at Co-op Live, luckily it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.

Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.

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Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 01:00 on Fridays and Saturdays.

An integrated tram travel scheme, with free trams with your gig ticket, has been extended for Justin Timberlake.

Bus

If you want to take another new and improved arm of Manchester’s public transport system, not only is there a whole host of routes that drop you off close to the venue but there’ll also be a free shuttle bus from the city centre to and from events between 20 April-30 June 2024.

You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live. You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.

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Co-op Live and TfGM to offer FREE trams and buses to and from new arena for all event ticket holders

Getting there by car and parking

If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue but this must be pre-booked ahead of time and there are designated drop-off areas.

The postcode is M11 3DU and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.

Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide come event day – though estimates will obviously vary:

  • Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
  • Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
  • Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.

There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:

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  • Ashton Moss (Ashton line) – 183 spaces and 12 disabled spaces
  • Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
  • Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces

Walk/cycle

Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.

Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes through the Beryl, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the boke all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.

For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.

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Featured image: Supplied, Charlotte Rutherford

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Blossoms at O2 Ritz Manchester – five-night hometown residency is already a triumph

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Blossoms at O2 Ritz Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group

Blossoms are a band who were born and forged here in Greater Manchester, and now they’re back retracing their steps with a five-night residency across the venues that launched them into the big leagues.

Their star has risen all the way to arena level and headline shows at Wythenshawe Park at this point, especially here in their hometown, so the chance to see them back in these cosy-ish little venues is special, and a little bizarre.

For night two of their landmark sold-out gig series, it was the turn of the O2 Ritz, that sweaty spot off Oxford Road where the floor bounces downstairs and you stick to the carpets upstairs.

Poetically, the first time I ever saw Blossoms was in this very room in 2016, when they had the mid-afternoon slot at Neighbourhood festival and the queue to get in went all the way back to St Peter’s Square.

Since those days, Blossoms have come a long, long way, and their live show has evolved and matured from five lads thrashing on their instruments to this well-oiled, hip-swaying, flares-wearing, chart-topping machine.

There’s even choreography now – how fancy!

A stand-out moment from the show is actually a song from their new, fifth studio album Gary, which is still barely eight weeks old.

A spoof recording of legendary Manchester indie club 42s rings out, then all five band members abandon their stations, slinging keytars and marching drums around their necks so that they can dance together in front of neon signs.

Blossoms have just done their second of five shows in Manchester, this time at the O2 Ritz. Credit: The Manc Group
Blossoms have just done their second of five shows in Manchester, this time at the O2 Ritz. Credit: The Manc Group
Blossoms on stage at the O2 Ritz in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Blossoms on stage at the O2 Ritz in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group

Blossoms promised more disco with this album and they bloody meant it. It’s not just the flares and the blow-dries and the moustaches (though those do help) – it’s in the funk and groove that’s gradually crept into their music exponentially with each album release.

This is still indie rock but it’s the most danceable of its genre. Good luck keeping your shoulders from wiggling and jiggling in here. Good luck keeping that grin off your face.

And Gary is one of the most unexpectedly fun albums to be released in the last year – the fact they called it Gary, named after a giant fibreglass garden centre Gorilla, should’ve been our clue. It could border on silly were it not such a masterpiece.

It seems like the only thing Blossoms are trying to prove is that you can be wildly successful without taking yourself too seriously. They just seem like a group who want to have a good time and it’s totally infectious.

Case in point – when each band member is introduced, keyboardist Myles Kellock plays the riff of Satisfaction by Benny Benassi and The Biz. Unexpected.

Blossoms also clearly give a sh*t about their live shows and graft at it – I’ve seen these guys an awful lot and it’s because their tour dates are plentiful and consistently worth the ticket price.

This is definitely the biggest era of their career so far, but have they peaked? Not even close.

There are still three nights left of the Blossoms residency. You can read all about it HERE.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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The Warehouse Project reveals return to Rotterdam for second-ever overseas event

Danny Jones Danny Jones The Warehouse Project Rotterdam lineup 2025 tickets

The Warehouse Project has confirmed it will be returning to Rotterdam in 2025 for just its second-ever overseas event.

After debuting abroad in 2023 with an action-packed few days in the city of Rotterdam – whose art scene, music culture and even canal network bears lots of similarities to Manchester – Warehouse Project is coming back for more.

There’s just over a month left of the 2024 WHP calendar; you’d think they’d be getting ready to wind down and enjoy the Christmas breather, but not so: the organisers are already planning what is set to be one of their biggest and best long weekends to date.

Set to take place over the early May bank holiday, the Dutch port city will once again play host to one of Manchester’s legendary club nights.

The second biggest city in the Netherlands behind Amsterdam, the next edition of Warehouse’s international series is set to return to Rotterdam RDM – a warehouse space very reminiscent of both Depot Mayfield and their original home at Victoria Warehouse.

WHP x RDM II is already being billed as an “unforgettable weekend” and if any of this year’s mainline events here in Manchester are anything to go by, they’re bound to live up to that promise.

There’s also a full FAQ page for anyone looking to find out more information regarding Rotterdam, the venue itself, travel and more.

As well as revealing the dates (2-4 May 2025), the organisers have already teased a good chunk of the lineup, with the likes of Chris Stussy, Peach, Four Tet b2b with Sammy Virji, salute and many more already confirmed.

With a slew of incredible acts, multiple afterparties on boats and other local venues, as well as plenty of opportunity to see the rest of Holland’s ‘Manhattan on the Maas’, this is going to be SO good.

rotterdam boat party warehouse project
whp rotterdam lineup 2025
rdm rotterdam hosting the warehouse project second international event
Credit: The Manc Group/Press Images (supplied)

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We were lucky enough to have been sent to sample their inaugural Rotterdam date back in April of 2023 and, we have to say, it was an absolute blast.

Take it from us, if you’re considering being a part of this next event you won’t regret and we’ll be putting together an extensive guide to help you feel prepared for raving overseas. Registration for early access is already live, so sign up fast if you want to give yourself the best chance of being there.

Limited presale and accommodation packages will be available to those who have applied at 9am on Monday, 2 December (UK customers only). General admission tickets will go live from 9am n Tuesday, 3 December sale for UK and Dutch customers starts Tuesday 3rd December at 9am GMT/10am CET.

Rotterdam 2025 will be here before you know it, so take a boots-on-the-ground at what an international Warehouse Project date looks like down below:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Supplied/The Manc Group

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